1. Field of The Invention
The present invention relates to the field of resurfacing skin, or wrinkle removal using laser radiation for treatment of underlying layers of skin.
2. Prior Art
Plastic surgeons, dermatologists and their patients continually search for new and approved methods for treating the effects of an aging skin. Historically, the treatment of facial wrinkles was primarily accomplished with the use of chemical peels or dermabrasion. The use of chemical peels has fallen out of favor, because it is difficult to accurately control and predict the depth of tissue injury after such peels are applied. Deeper chemical peels in particular have an increased risk of hypopigmentation and scarring. Such injury to the top layer of skin, which would be peeled away, would permit new cells to supposedly rejuvenate the skin. A less expensive way of injuring the outer layer of the skin is the utilization of an abrasive wheel, to rough off the skin layer. This method is not well controlled, and is very difficult especially around the eyelids.
Laser skin resurfacing began with a carbon dioxide laser. The carbon dioxide laser energy is absorbed by tissue water causing vaporization of the outer skin layer. Carbon dioxide lasers have been utilized for approximately 3 decades. However it has only been the past few years that these lasers have been arranged to remove only thin tissue layers with minimal heat damage to the surrounding skin. While carbon dioxide lasers may remove about 150 microns of skin, that skin may take a month or more to heal under such a procedure.
Er:YAG lasers have been utilized to ablate even thinner layers of tissue than carbon dioxide layers. However they lack the coagulation characteristics and thus allow more bleeding than a carbon dioxide laser during use.
Non-ablative skin resurfacing, is a methodology which does not take the top layer of skin off, but which shrinks the collagen under that skin, and modifies that collagen, so that the wrinkled skin appears to be fill-in by the collagen modified beneath the skin. This methodology however, has a low efficiency, and a cryogen coolant must be sprayed on to the skin so as to minimize damaging the top or upper layer thereof and also to minimize pain generation. The "fluence" or energy density used is greater than 10 joules per square centimeter and to be more effective this fluence often reaches 30 Joules per square centimeter. This level of energy often causes pain and epidermal damage.
It is an object of the present invention to improve upon the shortcomings of the prior art.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a skin resurfacing laser treatment, which is nonablative, and minimizes any pain to the patient being treated.
It is yet still a further object of the present invention, to provide a new method to stimulate the collagen beneath the skin surface, to improve the surface appearance from beneath that surface of skin of the patient.